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Robots make their mark @ CGH ED

While exploring CGH, I encountered a contraption called "robots". These moving machines carry out repetitive tasks that would otherwise take up hospital staff members' time. As I witnessed them roving around, their whirring presence brought to mind the image of a humming beehive, busy and productive, one which attended to patient needs efficiently.

The hospital, which already has more than 80 robots in action, debuted three new types of autonomous mobile robots in early 2023 to support the Emergency Department (ED) care team. The robots, a collaboration by a team of CGH ED nurses, pharmacists, operations staff, service ambassadors and engineers from the Centre for Healthcare Assistive and Robotics Technologies (CHART), were trialled successfully over five months in the same year.

Robots make their mark @ CGH ED

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Ushering with a Smile
Emergency Department innovation (EDi)

Deployed at two locations within the ED, EDi guides patients and their next-of-kin to various patient care areas. EDi's stellar wayfinding skills are thanks to the best routes mapped out by the ED and CHART teams to navigate the complex ED environment. Armed with a smile, EDi communicates in four languages - English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil. The two EDi robots relieve nurses, health screeners and service ambassadors from escorting visitors, saving them around four minutes per round trip or 1.5 hours daily.

Delivering on Demand
Medication Delivery innovation (MDi)

MEDi collects and delivers medication from the ED pharmacy to identified patient care areas. With storage for up to four baskets of medication in separate compartments, MEDi is able to deliver to four different locations in the ED. Activated via a tablet, MEDi expertly manoeuvres its way around the hospital on its pick-up and delivery jobs, and upon reaching its destination, announces its arrival via an audio message for retrieval of the medications. This saves nurses up to seven minutes of walking to collect medications from the ED pharmacy, allowing them to remain at their stations to focus on patient care uninterrupted.

Spreading Warmth on the Go
Blanket Delivery innovation (BLANKi)

Self-service robot, BLANKi, roams the waiting areas of the ED at scheduled times, providing blankets to visitors who feel cold. BLANKi has three shelves stocked with blankets that visitors can retrieve simply by touching its screen to stop it. With as many as 80 blanket requests in a day, BLANKi lightens the load of retrieving blankets by CGH service ambassadors by half, allowing them to focus on other crucial tasks, thus enhancing their efficiency and service in ED waiting areas.